On Friday, May 27, the Department hosted a teenage pregnancy dialogue at The Hills High School, in Johannesburg South. This forms part of Child Protection Week activities. 
The Department’s Social Workers gave the teenagers the platform to partake in dialogues that enabled them to interact with each other and to speak about the issues they face with regards to the prevalent teenage pregnancy phenomenon.

Sibahle (17), a teen mom said falling pregnant at a young age is not the end of the world, but it is a blessing and a lesson. Being the mother to her child is a gift, however she wishes she had waited until she was financially stable and had built her career before having the child.

Mikaela (17) said growing up in  a religious home taught her to be pro-life and stand against abortion as abortion is a sin. She said she was taught that waiting for marriage before having kids is the way to go, but I unfortunately she a child at 14. “I believe that if you decide to be sexually active and happen to fall pregnant, then it's your responsibility to keep and raise the child or put them up for adoption."

18 year old Mbali, a learner from Silver Oaks High School shared, "During my first trimester, I felt scared and didn't know who to talk to and so I confided in my friends who told me that drinking a vinegar, Disprin and coke concoction, which would terminate my pregnancy. Fortunately, my sister stopped me just before drinking it, and accompanied me to the clinic where I was able to terminate my pregnancy."

The dialogue covered a variety of topics including; what advice would the teenage mothers give to the girls that don't have children; what's their take on the termination of pregnancy; how to deal with the pressure of being a young mother, etc. This dialogue created a platform where the teenagers could freely express themselves amongst their peers while sharing their fears and encounters.

In addition, pupils were educated on the importance of family planning and were provided information about the multiple options available to them.

The Department’s Social Workers were joined by Ke Moja, I’m fine without Drugs crew, Ikhaya Lethemba, Rosettenville Clinic Nurses together with pupils from neighboring secondary schools